Forest vs Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and More – UEFA Europa League Updates
Live Updates
Major Moments
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Game over: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Team news: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The opening scores greatly affect the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and returned to the safety of knockout positions.
| Rank | Team | Matches | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midtjylland | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| 2 | Aston Villa | 5 | 5 | 12 |
| 3 | Freiburg | 5 | 5 | 11 |
| 4 | Ferencvaros | 5 | 4 | 11 |
| 5 | FC Porto | 5 | 3 | 10 |
| 17 | Celtic | 5 | -1 | 7 |
| 25 | Nottm Forest | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 35 | Rangers | 4 | -7 | 0 |
| 33 | Malmo FF | 4 | -5 | 1 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Villa managed to hold on for the win and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but had just additional time to find an equaliser!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A famous and valuable win for the Scottish team. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans engaging with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and at the playing surface, with Malen himself being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, McAtee, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, The defender, The full-back, The midfielder, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Starting Players
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, The striker.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Match official: The Dutch referee (Netherlands)
Preamble
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and past encounters. The these sides have a unique relationship, also competing in Forest's most recent continental tour in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the premier competition final decades past that links these clubs, with the groundbreaking transfer Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to claim legendary status for the red half of Nottingham.
"Forest's famous bosses, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," commented the writer. This represented an extraordinary accomplishment that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European stage in a short period."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The smart money is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been lost to a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are at the foot of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the group stage with precisely zero points. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a qualification place.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
